What the Rain Brings
by neko no warai
Summary: The first time they met was because of the rain. For Sasuke, it meant he could have a peaceful lunch. For Naruto, it was his first friend. //Two pre-series one-shots. SasuNaru friendship//
1. What the Rain Brings

Summary: 7-year-old Sasuke did not like rain. He didn't like being cramped inside with all the other noisy children for a whole day. Luckily, he's found a way to shock the class silent. All he needs to do is sit by the outcast. _:::Pre-series. One-shot. SasuNaru friendship:::_

Words: 937

Notes: The second chapter is from Naruto's point of view (I like it better, actually).

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**What the Rain Brings**

He stared out the window, allowing the dismal view of endless rain to influence his mood. He didn't like rain; the teachers never let him play outside. Not to mention he got all cold and wet. No, Uchiha Sasuke did not like rain one bit.

With a groan, the seven-year-old boy pushed himself away from the window and yawned. He wondered which umbrella he would get today. He secretly hoped it was the one with little cats, but no one needed to know that. As he was lost in thoughts of cat-umbrellas, he changed out of his PJs and into the clothes he had picked out the night before. His father never picked out his outfits anymore; he said Sasuke had to grow up and that his parents wouldn't always be there.

When he was fully clothed and had cleaned his teeth, he made his way to the kitchen for breakfast. His mother was humming a soft tune as she scrambled eggs, just the way Sasuke liked it. With a smile, he ran over and gave her a tight hug. The sound of her warm laughter filled the kitchen and Sasuke thought that even with the rain, today would be a good day.

"Sasuke-kun, if you want your eggs, then off to the table with you," his mother jokingly ordered. He nodded and ran to sit at the table, waiting patiently for his promised breakfast.

Soon, his mother was placing the plate of scrambled eggs and bacon in front of Sasuke, who found his mouth watering just seeing the food. His mother gently ran her hand through his soft black hair, filling Sasuke with a feeling of contentment, before she left to clean up.

Ten minutes later, he was saying goodbye to his mother. Like usual, his brother was already on a mission and his father was locked away in his study. But he didn't mind; he knew how busy they were. _Maybe_, he thought,_ they can train me some more after school!_ Excitement filled the young boy at the mere thought of getting to train with his brother, and he happily skipped off to school, cat-umbrella in hand.

* * * * * *

The beginning of the day had gone quickly and soon they were dismissed for lunch. Like Sasuke expected, they did not allow them to eat outside. He sighed; the excitement of earlier had passed the moment he entered the classroom that morning. The reason: Haruno Sakura. The young, pink-haired girl had finally gotten the courage to ask him out.

Sasuke had snorted, "Out where? We can't go anywhere, it's raining."

Sakura blushed cutely, "N-not just anywhere, Sasuke-kun. It would be a d-date."

"A date?" Sasuke asked, confused.

Sakura's blush deepened, "You know, holding hands and kissing and stuff." Sasuke's eyes widened and he immediately began backing away.

"No way! That's just… eww!!" And with that Sasuke left, still shuddering at the thought of kissing. He retreated into his shell at that point, trying to force his thoughts back onto _normal_ things. And then class had started.

Now, however, he had a new problem: if he couldn't go outside for lunch, how could he eat peacefully, away from the other students? His answer came in the form of a particularly rude and obnoxious student, who seemed to have trouble keeping his mouth shut.

"What? No! I refuse to sit near that— that— demon!" Sasuke turned to look at where the annoying student was pointing. What he saw confused him. The boy, who Sasuke swore he had never seen before, was quietly sitting in the corner of the room, looking at no one. Nobody came within two meters of him.

Suddenly, a thought struck the young Uchiha. If no one went near the blond in the corner, would that mean that he could eat peacefully if he sat there too? Nodding at his logic, he calmly made his way through the rowdy students and over to the boy. Bright, crystal blue eyes were staring at him as he sat down and proceeded to eat, as if nothing was unusual. Silence filled the classroom, and Sasuke smirked.

The blond-haired one began shifting nervously, "Anou, what exactly are you doing?"

Sasuke raised an eyebrow, "Eating, of course."

"Yeah, but why here?" There was pure confusion in those bright blue eyes.

Sasuke just shrugged and finished the apple he had been enjoying. Blue eyes were fixed intently on the sandwich that Sasuke picked up next. As if the blond's stomach realized there was food nearby, it began to rumble. Sasuke looked curiously over at him.

"Your tummy's making noises," he intelligently informed the blond. A blush was his answer. "Does that mean you want this?" He proceeded to wave the sandwich in front of him, almost tauntingly.

"Please?" came the soft voice, eyes still transfixed on the sandwich. Sasuke shrugged yet again as he handed over his food. He wasn't really that hungry, anyway. Suddenly, the blond's face lit up in a bright smile, the whisker marks on his cheeks bringing out a picture of innocent happiness.

"Thank you!" Within moments, the poor sandwich was gone. Sasuke figured it was worth it if he got to see such a pure smile.

"Hey," Sasuke suddenly thought, "What's your name?"

"Uzumaki Naruto!" The blond stated proudly, a fox-like grin on his face.

Sasuke couldn't help but to smile, "I'm Uchiha Sasuke." And so their friendship began. For once in his life, Sasuke found himself silently thanking the rain that had presented this opportunity. He continued to eat in peace with the now-happy blond beside him. _Yes_, he thought, _rain was alright_.


	2. His First Friend

Summary: Life for a seven-year-old Naruto was not all peaches and cream. First, he misses breakfast, then he has to face a lunch full of painful whispers and no food. So why did he return to the orphanage with such a bright smile?

Words: 1,113

Notes: excuse the very tiny bit of Japanese, but "umm" didn't sound half as good as "anou" at the time ^^

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**His First Friend**

He was woken up that day by someone roughly shaking his shoulder. Using all of his willpower, Naruto forced his blue eyes open to make out the figure of whoever it was that had rudely awakened him.

"Get up, idiot, or you'll be late for school again," came a snotty voice. Naruto rubbed the sleep from his eyes but, by the time his vision was finally clear, the other boy had left him. Frowning, he forced himself up off the ground and stretched. The soft sound of pattering rain made its way to his sensitive ears and he grinned.

"It's raining!" he called out, knowing no one was listening anyway. No one ever listened. Keeping his grin firmly in place, he began to dress himself in the only pair of clothes he had; a bright orange shirt and dark blue shorts. He had chosen those colours himself, to the dismay of the fashion-inclined "mother" of the orphanage.

When he was fully clothed and ready for the day, he skipped out of the room, already picturing his breakfast. He entered the grimy kitchen, being sure to avoid some of the holes in the floor, and was met with the sight of a pile of dirty dishes.

"Sorry kid, breakfast was half an hour ago. You know how it goes." Naruto looked up at "mother", the woman who took care of all the kids. She wasn't a bad mother, she just seemed to have something against Naruto. _Maybe it's 'cause I picked orange clothes_, Naruto mused silently, already working to ignore his growling stomach. He was used to this. It wasn't his fault he was a late sleeper.

Within five minutes, he was out the door and headed toward school. Voices followed him every step of the way, but they were drowned out by the pouring rain. That was one of the reasons Naruto like the rain; it gave him isolation from all of the glares and harsh words. Always, the seven-year-old had strove to be accepted, and tried to figure out what he had done wrong.

The school was in sight and Naruto picked up his pace. Everyone was crowding indoors, trying to stay out of the rain. Naruto's grin, which had been discarded at the sight of dirty, breakfast-less dishes, came back full force; he wasn't late. He debated whether or not to jump on the teacher to make his presence known, but, being cold and wet, he decided against it. Instead, the young blond-haired boy made his way silently through the crowd and into the seat farthest from the teacher.

He watched, with deep-rooted longing, as the pretty pink-haired girl practically ran over to the black-eyed boy. He sighed, as the plump child ate his chips and talked to the pony-tailed one beside him. He wanted nothing more than to join in, but he knew, by past experience, that he would be rejected. Today, he didn't feel up to more rejection. The teacher soon arrived.

At the sight of his teacher, Naruto zoned out. He had already been in school for two months, and yet the teacher still paid him absolutely no attention. He hadn't even been introduced to the class, though he had easily fixed that. Now he simply went into his own little world, where no one glared at him or called him a monster, knowing that he wouldn't be called upon or bothered. Often, he wished someone would bother him.

Lunch was probably what Naruto looked forward to the least on that rainy day. Talking erupted throughout the classroom as friends got together. Eventually, Naruto looked away from the happy children and focused his attention on his stomach, telling it not to make those funny sounds anymore.

"I dare you to eat over by Naruto-kun," a nearby blond-haired girl said to another pony-tailed one, though not the one Naruto had watched earlier.

"What? No! I refuse to sit near that— that— demon!" Naruto inwardly winced, the comment hitting him deep though he refused to acknowledge it. Then something new happened. The black-eyed boy had begun walking towards him. Naruto looked up, studying the spiky black hair as he attempted to put a name to the face.

The quiet boy sat directly beside Naruto, already taking out a red apple to eat. Shocked silence ran throughout the classroom. Naruto felt the glares of some of the girls, and as usual, he didn't know why they were giving him such looks.

Returning his attention to the other boy, Naruto hesitantly said, "Anou, what are you doing?"

"Eating, of course." Naruto almost glared at the mocking reply, but he was too shocked that someone was eating near him.

"Yeah, but why here?" He asked, still staring wide-eyed at the confusing boy. A shrug was his answer. Then, as he finished the apple, the black-haired boy took out a sandwich. Instantly, Naruto's attention was focused fully on the tantalizing food. His stomach made a protesting growl, reminding him that he hadn't had breakfast and didn't have a lunch.

The other boy turned to look at him, "Your tummy's making noises." Heat flooded Naruto's face, and he silently ordered his stomach to be silent. Then the boy was waving the sandwich nearly in his face, "Does that mean you want this?"

Naruto tried desperately to shove down his hunger and not fall prey to what could be a trick. He wanted to believe this boy would give it to him freely, but it had never happened before. But his stomach would not give up, and after inwardly bracing himself, Naruto said what he hoped would get him the sandwich.

"Please?" His voice was soft, but he didn't have the heart to care anymore. His stomach was in cold pain as he waited for the other boy's reaction. A shrug, and suddenly the sandwich was in his hands. He smiled brightly, allowing the happiness to engulf him as he devoured the first food of the day. He had, of course, remembered to say his thanks.

The boy's voice broke him from his contentment, "Hey, what's your name?"

Naruto grinned, pleased at having been asked such a personal question, "Uzumaki Naruto!"

The black-haired boy smiled, "I'm Uchiha Sasuke." The rest of lunch passed in companionable silence, with Naruto smiling the entire time. He wondered if he could eat near Sasuke again the next day, and was filled with happy excitement at the mere thought. When he finally returned to the orphanage, his "mother" was astounded at his bright mood.

"What's gotten into you?" she asked, not even trying to hide the malice in her voice.

Naruto's grin turned into a full-fledged smile, "I've got a friend!"


End file.
